Another major storm may be headed our way

Tuesday

Feb 12, 2013 at 3:15 AMFeb 12, 2013 at 12:00 PM

DOVER — Keep the shovels close by; snow may fall again midweek with a major storm possibly hitting us again this weekend.

As if Nemo was not enough for Mother Nature, she brought more snow to the Seacoast on Monday, along with rain, and is expected to bring several more snowstorms to the region over the next 7 to ten days.

By Michelle Kingstonmkingston@fosters.com

DOVER — Keep the shovels close by; snow may fall again midweek with a major storm possibly hitting us again this weekend.

As if Nemo was not enough for Mother Nature, she brought more snow to the Seacoast on Monday, along with rain, and is expected to bring several more snowstorms to the region over the next 7 to ten days.

“The big thing about this week will be the lack of cold air across not only New England, but the rest of the country,” Tom Kines of AccuWeather said.

The warm air will start to melt the snow, but will end up freezing over night, which can cause treacherous roads.

This melting can also cause flooding.

“There is typically poor drainage with snow blocking the storm drains and water having nowhere to go,” Kines said. “One good thing with milder weather is nights should still be at or below freezing so the thawing will be gradual and that is what we want.”

Over the next week, Kines said significant flooding should not be a huge issue, but significant snow could be.

“We are actually heading into a weather pattern with an opportunity for snow every few days,” Kines said.

A storm is expected to pass to the region's south Wednesday night.

Kines said it will most likely hit Rhode Island and Connecticut, but if it does wind up further north, we may get a period of snow.

“It does look like over the weekend some colder air will come back in,” he said.

The amount of snow is “significant,” he said, “meaning, enough to shovel and plow.”

The report for weekend snow shows it will affect Eastern states and Canada, but was still over the northern part of the Pacific Ocean Monday night.

”However, with the way cold air will plunge southward over the Central states this weekend may not only set up a corresponding northward storm track along the Atlantic Seaboard,” AccuWeather stated in a public statement. “It could cause the storm to strengthen rapidly as it moves up from the South.”

How much snow will fall is still in question.

“It will be a matter of how quickly the storm strengthens to determine if heavy snow is thrown back over the Atlantic Seaboard or falls over Atlantic waters,” AccuWeather stated.

This storm will be unlike Nemo, in that it will be a singular storm instead of two systems merging together.

“The problem with a singular storm dipping to the south and turning northward is that such a setup can still bring tremendous amounts of moisture northward,” AccuWeather stated. “Cold air feeding into the storm from the north and west would help the storm spin faster and faster, potentially bringing high wind and conditions ranging from dry and cold to a major blizzard or northeaster.”

AccuWeather estimates the storm could hit New England Sunday night, but added the details on the track and the storm's intensity will unfold throughout the week.

“Even if the storm fails to erupt this weekend, there are almost a half-dozen additional candidates for major winter storms reaching from the Southwestern U.S. to the Midwest and the East Coast through the end of February, essentially a whole pipeline of storms,” AccuWeather stated.